A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a golf club system having interchangeable heads, adjustable length and a convenient case for carrying the clubs system about the body of the user.
B. Description of the Prior Art
The popularity of golf is currently at an all time high, and continues to show growth as more courses are being constructed across the country to meet the demand. However, the convenience of golf is relatively unchanged as few golf courses are located close to neighborhoods and downtown urban areas. And even when there is one golf course nearby, it is often the case that the course is either private and therefore unavailable to the golfer, or a different course is desired by the golfer for the sake of variety. It is therefore currently incumbent on the golfer to lug a heavy bag of clubs to the course in order to have the full range of golf clubs available to him during play, including the various woods, irons, putter, balls and various accessories. Often the golfer is a beginner, an elderly or handicapped user, or is unable to conveniently carry a full set of clubs to the course because of his physical limitations or other practical limitations.
Past efforts have been made to manufacture golf club kits or adjustable clubs to replace the standard golf club set.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,650,183 to Brooks shows a golf club having a selectively attachable head and handle for providing different loft heads for a single shaft. A threaded head and matching threaded shaft mate together to form a club.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,051,961 to Mears shows a golf club having a telescoping handle and a threadedly engaged head.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,524,646 shows a golf club assembly having a threadedly attached head and shaft for a putter.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,424,459 shows a golf club having an interchangeable golf club head.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,092 shows a carrying case for a multi-piece, telescoping golf club set.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,848,737 to Kenon shows a case for carrying multi-headed golf club and golf club accessories.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,212 to Hill shows a multi-part golf club and carrying case therefor. A threaded cuff on the handle threads on to mating threads on the head.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,253,666 to Murphy shows a case for a multi-part, disassemblable golf club which can be attached to the clothing or belt of the user.
However, none of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.
The game of golf is played using a number of golf clubs from the putter to the irons to the woods and driver. Each club has its unique clubface loft and overall shaft length to provide a controllable trajectory of the ball flight, or more simply, to control the length that the ball travels in flight. On a typical hole of 320 plus yards, a golfer would normally hit the longest hitting club in his bag, namely a driver (the one wood) from the tee box to reduce the required distance to the hole on his second shot. The golfer would then approximate the distance left to the pin, and select an iron or fairway wood from his bag, which, in his golf experience, he has been successful hitting the needed distance. The golfer then hits one or more shots until he has successfully reached the green. The flat bladed putter is then used to roll the ball across the well manicured green into the hole concluding play on the particular hole. With golfers ranging from the professional caliber level to the beginner, the required number of strokes to successfully complete the hole might vary from three strokes (a xe2x80x9cbirdiexe2x80x9d) to ten or more. The number of different lofted clubs used during play on the hole might also vary from three clubs to eight or nine. By rule, a player can carry up to fourteen clubs in his bag to anticipate all of the different situations that he may find himself.
As can be imagined, the expense, weight and bulkiness of carrying fourteen clubs and all of the accessories necessary for the game of 18 holes can be daunting. But in order to effectively have the best chance of scoring well, players want to have their full compliment of clubs to make the already difficult game as easy as possible. Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a golf club set which can be easily assembled and disassembled from a limited number of pieces to provide a compact and lightweight set of fully functional golf clubs capable of playing a complete round of golf.
It is another object of the invention to provide a portable golf club set which can be carried in a case wearable by a user.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a golf club set that can economically be made according to the method described herein using a standard, easily available golf club parts, including a non-threaded golf club head, for incorporation into an adjustable golf club.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a golf club and accessories set which is easier to transport and retains all the functionality of a standard golf club set.
It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.